Comparisons between job hunting and dating are common, and never are they more true than when it comes to the follow-up. After a date, you want to let the other party know you're interested, but you don't want to appear desperate. Plus, you don't want to feel foolish if he or she had no intention of contacting you again. On the other hand, what if he or she is waiting for you to make the call and if you don't you'll miss out on a great romance?

So many questions and no definite answers to any of them. Ultimately you have to use your best judgment and hope for the best.

Following up after a job interview is similar. As if you weren't nervous enough, you end up asking yourself a dozen questions and imagining hypothetical situations. "If I follow up now, do I seem desperate? If I wait too long will they think I'm lazy? What if I'm the frontrunner but I bug them and they cross my name off the list? What if I'm tied with someone else and my initiative gives me the edge?"

As with dating, job hunts don't have rules set in stone. At best you can do what feels right and see what happens. We realize how aggravating that is, so we decided to give you some guidelines that you can use in your post-interview follow-up.

Here are three possible methods for following up with an employer and ways to know if you've crossed the line from eager to annoying.

1. The thank-you note is necessary after an interview and no job seeker can afford to forego it. Thank-you notes tell hiring managers that you respect their time. They have packed schedules and can only afford to spend time interviewing a select group of applicants, so your note acknowledges how grateful you are to get some face time.

Appropriate: An e-mailed note on the same day of the interview shows that you are courteous and don't dawdle. For most employers, an e-mail is an acceptable form of thanks because e-mail is a part of everyday business life and arrives quickly. A handwritten letter can be sent as a supplement to the e-mail if you want to stress your gratitude or you know the interviewer is old-fashioned.

Overkill: If you're going to follow up with a letter on your follow-up letter, think again. You already said thank you, so what else do you need to say? Both you and the hiring manager know that another letter is your way of asking, "Did I get the job?" Don't clog the hiring manager's inbox with more notes unless you want to be associated with being a pest.

2. The phone call is daunting and not the right move in every job situation. In fact, many job postings specifically state, "No phone calls." Unless you're feeling brave, you might want to skip it.

Appropriate: Unless you were specifically instructed not to call the hiring manager or another contact, you can make the call after an appropriate amount of time has passed. In this case, if you were given a deadline for when a decision would be made, let it pass and wait a few extra days and then make the call. Just once (unless instructed to call back).

Overkill: The phone call is one of -- if not the -- easiest ways to sabotage your image. Call once, when appropriate, and don't call again unless you've been told to. Phone calls are a nuisance in a way that letters and e-mails aren't. You can not open a message or just read it and ignore it. A phone call is harder to ignore if it requires the hiring manager to screen his or her calls once you become a repeat offender. If the company wants you, they probably won't forget to call you, not vice versa.

3. The pop-in causes you anxiety when your in-laws do it. Your place is a mess and suddenly you're forced to entertain people (who you might not like very much anyway). Please don't do that to an employer if you want to be considered for a job.

Appropriate: Stopping by to visit the company is rarely acceptable. Unless you have an explicit indication that you're welcome to show up uninvited, which would actually imply that you are invited, showing up in person is inappropriate. This follow-up is one case where once is almost certainly too much.

Overkill: When you show up and the hiring manager or receptionist gives you a look that says, "Why are you here?" you'll know you've crossed a line. Employers are busy -- they have schedules, meetings, clients and tasks. By showing up unannounced, you not only disrupt their routine but also imply that you are more important than their obligations and deserve their immediate attention.

Of course, you're bound to meet someone who broke one of these rules and impressed the hiring manager by his or her audacity. Perhaps going against etiquette will work for you. Just be aware that you're risking your professional reputation and could be removing yourself from the running for a job where you were a top candidate.

Going into a job interview is difficult enough, but trying to figure out the meaning behind some questions just adds to the anxiety of job-hunting.

Sometimes seemingly simply questions will have "hidden" agendas, but more often than not, the interviewer is trying to gauge your true interest in the company and what value you can bring to its workforce.

If asked, "Why do you want to work here?", that's a perfect opportunity to show the firm you've done your homework. The interviewer wants details -- how does this company stand apart from its competitors, what new products or services are they offering -- and this is the moment to shine by having well-researched answers ready to deliver. If possible, mention something you are particularly familiar with about the firm that you can link directly to your own work experience and talents.

Even when asked the inevitable "What are your strengths?", find something in your own background that shows the particular talents you bring to this company's table. Put your strongest qualities into the context of what this prospective employer does and how they meet the company's goals.

Then there's the flip side: "What are your weaknesses?" For years, people have been counseled to envelope their "weakness" in an answer that actually makes it sound like a strength. But job interviewers have heard them all, and those answers tend to sound hollow these days. Rather, choose a time when you had to face a significant challenge or adversity -- without getting too personal -- and tell how you overcame that dilemma and were improved by it. Tell what you learned and how that newfound knowledge benefitted you as a professional. People who recognize their weaknesses and show they want to do better are showing a prospective employer they are willing to do their best, even if it means learning by past mistakes.

The company wants a team player and an independent worker

When you are asked whether you work better alone or in a team, what they really want to know is how you interact with others and how much direction you need when you're assigned to work by yourself.

If you use time alone well, are you able to keep your boss posted on your progress at reasonable intervals? Are you good at brainstorming in a group, the one who comes up with rapid-fire ideas? Or are you the person who is likely to mold them into a collaborative effort to find a solution for the challenge at hand?  Either alone or in a team, you want to convey that you can interact well with co-workers at various levels of authority, but that you're a person who can be productive and come up with answers on your own as well.

Remember, an interview is a two-way street, and that's true where questions are concerned. Be sure to ask questions that show you have researched the company, and you're aware of current issues faced by the firm and the industry it's in. You need to show an interest in the company if you want them to show an interest in you.